visit day
When I finally got to hug my dad through the glass — except it wasn't glass that day, it was real — I didn't want to let go. I kept thinking, this is what normal feels like.
Maya, age 11
First family reunification visit, Ohio — 2024
Every sentence is served by a family.
FamilyReunite fights to keep children connected to incarcerated parents — through policy reform, reentry support, and the healing that only proximity can bring.
The numbers behind every family waiting.
children in America have had a parent incarcerated.
That's 7% of all U.S. children — more than the population of Los Angeles.
of incarcerated parents have never received a visit from their child.
Distance, cost, and policy barriers make the four-hour drive feel impossible.
spent annually by families just to stay in touch.
Phone calls, visits, commissary — the financial toll of loving someone inside.
people released from state and federal prison every single year.
Most plan to return to their families. Most need help doing it.
of people in state prison are parents of minor children.
1 in 5 of those children is age 4 or younger.
average state prison sentence — 8× longer than ASFA's 15-month reunification deadline.
The law that was meant to protect children is being used to permanently sever families.
Sources: Sentencing Project, Prison Policy Initiative, Pew Charitable Trusts, Bureau of Justice Statistics — 2023–2025
Six reforms that would bring families home.
These aren't abstractions. Each reform is named after a barrier that real families told us about in our healing circles.
Reform the Adoption & Safe Families Act
The ASFA's 15-month reunification deadline was written before mass incarceration. An average 10-year sentence shouldn't automatically terminate parental rights. We're fighting to extend the deadline and add incarceration exemptions.
Suspend Child Support Orders During Incarceration
Automatic suspension of child support orders during incarceration removes a bureaucratic barrier that traps formerly incarcerated parents in debt before they've had a single day to rebuild. Missing one payment can cost them their driver's license.
Eliminate Excessive Visitation Restrictions
Dress codes, pre-approval processes, and facility placement policies designed to discourage visits have no rehabilitative purpose. We advocate for visitation as a right, not a privilege — with transportation assistance for families who cannot afford the drive.
Guaranteed Safe Housing for Returning Parents
You cannot be a present parent from a shelter. We advocate for housing-first reentry policies that prioritize parents of minor children and remove criminal background screening barriers in federally subsidized housing.
Fund Family-Centered Rehabilitation Programs
Research is clear: parents who receive more visits have lower recidivism rates. We advocate for state budgets to fund family strengthening programs inside facilities — parenting classes, family therapy, and extended contact visits.
State-Funded Family Transportation Programs
The most common reason children don't visit is distance. We're building coalitions in 12 states to fund van programs, fuel assistance, and overnight stay grants that make the four-hour Saturday drive possible for every family.
The people who keep showing up.
Family MemberI drove four hours each way, every other Saturday for three years. The visits kept us both alive. When he came home, my son already knew him — because we never stopped showing up.
Denise R.
Mother & advocate, Detroit
ReentryMy public defender found FamilyReunite at midnight on a Tuesday. Three weeks later I had a reentry plan, a housing referral, and my first meeting with my kids' school counselor. That midnight search changed everything.
Marcus T.
Formerly incarcerated father, Atlanta
AdvocateI've represented 200 clients in 12 years. The ones who maintained family contact during incarceration came home differently — more grounded, more committed to staying out. Connection is the most effective rehabilitation program we have.
Priya Nair
Public Defender, Cook County
Community Healing Circles
Every second Saturday, families affected by incarceration gather — in person and online — to share, grieve, and plan together. No agenda. No professional facilitators telling you how to feel. Just people who understand the four-hour drive.
Stand With Families.
Every policy win starts with people who refuse to look away. Add your name. Tell us who you are. We'll send you the tools to make the four-hour Saturday drive shorter — for every family that comes after yours.
Your voice is the evidence.
Legislators change policy when they hear real names. Judges reconsider when they read real letters. You don't have to commit to anything — just tell us what happened, and we'll ask your permission before we use it.
Reentry Resources
Housing Navigator
Find criminal-record-friendly housing in your state
Child Support Modification Guide
Step-by-step process to suspend orders during incarceration
Visitation Rights Toolkit
Know your rights. Challenge illegal restrictions.
Transportation Assistance Map
Funded van programs and fuel grants by state
Parenting Inside & Out
Evidence-based program locator for incarcerated parents